Back from Iraq

Marisa O’Neil

While on duty in Iraq, 19-year-old Marine Lance Cpl. Mike Casillas

loved getting letters and packages from home.

He especially loved the gummy bears.

On Friday, Casillas, home on a 21-day leave, returned to his

former school, Wilson Elementary, to visit with family, old friends

and new students. Some of those students, from his brother’s

first-grade class last year, got to see in person for the first time

the Marine with whom they’d corresponded and sent goodies.

“It brings me up; it cheers me up,” Casillas said of getting the

letters and packages. “It keeps me alive longer and keeps me

fighting. And it helps me fight the heat.”

Casillas attended Wilson Elementary School, TeWinkle Middle School

and Estancia High School before joining the Marines and getting

shipped off to Al Ramadi, Iraq, for seven months with the 2nd

Battalion, 4th Marines. He visited Wilson Elementary School Friday

morning during an emotional ceremony when parents and children gave

him a warm welcome home and presented him with gifts.

His mother, Leticia Vitela, read a Spanish poem to him at the

ceremony.

“It’s is a proud moment,” parent Louie Rincon said as he snapped

photos.

Rincon has known Casillas and his family since his daughter

Crystal ran on the Estancia cross-country team with the young runner

destined for the Corps. Even then, Casillas liked to help others. One

night he ran out to search for Crystal and another girl when they

took a wrong turn during practice and hadn’t returned well after

dark, Rincon said.

“It’s great to see him grow up and become a Marine,” he said.

Last year, Casillas’ little brother, Danny, was having a tough

time dealing with his brother’s absence, first-grade teacher Lori

Maurer said.

“He started telling the class about his brother, who was fighting

in Iraq,” Maurer said. “He was very upset and emotional about it.”

Maurer decided to have the students write letters to Casillas and

collected money to buy things to send him, like toiletries and candy.

One child sent him a giant bag of gummy bears, which he carefully

rationed out to himself.

To Maurer’s surprise, he responded to each individual student with

a letter.

“Every time I had a chance, I’d write back,” Casillas said.

While in Al Ramadi, Casillas’ unit was tasked with missions such

as patrolling areas of responsibility and conducting raids on

suspicious houses, but it also helped in rebuilding the city’s

infrastructure and building a school, he said.

Yvonne Garcia, 7, wrote to Casillas and finally met him this week.

“He was in the war in Iraq, and it was 1,200 degrees or so,” she

said. “And they were building all this stuff. I think they’re going

to win the war.”

After his visit, Casillas will report to his base for normal,

ongoing training and await redeployment. He may have to go back to

Iraq, he said.

But for now, his family is happy to have him home.

“God sent him back,” Vitela said. “It was hard for everybody, for

his three brothers, too. We were all praying and waiting for his

telephone calls.”

* MARISA O’NEIL covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4268 or by e-mail at [email protected].